It has been almost 3 years (wow!) since the announcement of Google+Blog for WordPress and the uptake was much more than I ever expected it to be. Thousands of people explored the concept of using their Google+ content as a way to spice up their blogs, to keep their own off-site version of their posts, or to simply share content with those that aren't on G+. Given the ease of creating long form, media rich posts, who wouldn't want to use G+ as their content management platform?

But as software is updated over time it can get a little clunky and less efficient. I was never happy about the requirement of an API key and there have been many requests for more flexible templating. So with the plugin begging for a major update it has received one, as well as a rebranding. [Existing supporters receive a free upgrade, check your email or message me]

Social Media 2 WordPress for Google+ has arrived

This plugin has been rewritten from the ground up, promising to be faster and easier to use. A little feature rundown as follows:

* Import posts from multiple G+ profiles or pages* Transfer comments from G+ into your WordPress blog (with author attribution)* Complete customisation of how posts are presented with templates* Support for feature images* Filter imports by hashtag (inclusive or exclusive)* Customisable scheduling of imports* Updates from within WordPress* and much more...

More details about the plugin and Free / Paid ($19.99) versions are available on the website @ sm2wp.comSupport and feature requests provided via G+ Community @ goo.gl/nAsuYy

This is just the beginning for the new suite of plugins, with support for Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Tumblr and Blogger to follow.

With the release of Google+ came a new social media platform that encouraged the sharing of long form, structured content along with beautiful images in a way that was almost TOO easy. More and more people found themselves creating great posts that would have previously been submitted to their blog which was suddenly starting to look barren. It was for this reason that Google+Blog for WordPress was created, a simple plugin that takes posts from Google+ and imports them into your WordPress blog.

* Transfer posts from Google+ to WordPress seamlessly
* Support for multiple profiles (allowing multiple authors to post on your blog automatically)
* Import comments from Google+ to WordPress to show how active your posts are
* The option to only transfer posts with certain hashtags (or exclude posts by hashtag)
* Include images/videos in posts with an option to specify images as feature images/thumbnails
* Imported posts do not have to be automatically published, allowing final editing before becoming public

How Do I Buy The Plugin?
There are two versions of the plugin available, the first of which is available for US$10. This cost covers the continued development of the plugin and allows me to provide support where possible. If you are not happy with the plugin I will happily refund you. To purchase the full version click on the paypal link below.

Can I Get It For Free?
A free version of the plugin is also available for download. This version provides the same functionality as the paid one, with the caveat of each post containing a small blurb with a link back to this site. Support is also limited for the free version of the plugin, though I encourage all users to try before they buy. To download the free version, click the link below.

If you have any comments, questions or suggestions related to the plugin, please do not hesitate to contact me by choosing your favourite contact method on the right (though email is preferred). Thanks for the support.

Daniel Treadwell is a Developer, Amateur Photographer and Founder of Fotostat, a central hub where photographers can easily manage their online presence.

I have a confession to make, I have started blogging at least 3 times that I can recall (it is likely more) but have never managed to stick with it. It's a common story, one that is easily proven by the abundance of first posts followed up with nothing at all on blogs all over the web.

It's hard to pinpoint the exact cause of my inability to blog for a decent amount of time but is likely a combination of lack of motivation due to other projects taking priority, lack of focus on a topic or subject for the blog and possibly the idea the noone cares what it is I have to say. Despite having these issues in the past, I feel like this time will be different. Some problems may still pop up from time to time but the way in which I now blog will hopefully allow me to keep on track.

Over the past year and a half or so I have been the most active I have ever been on a social network. The release of Google+ gave me all the features I wanted that I felt were missing or not well implemented on other networks. It also allowed me to start fresh with a new community and has become a place I really love to spend time. Early on I noticed that several high profile bloggers had been creating long-form posts on the network whilst their blogs began to become a little stale. It was an interesting turn of events and not really something I feel many expected. Upon noticing this phenomenon I created a proof of concept which allowed anyone on Google+ to visit my site and have a 'blog' be created based on their posts. I didn't expect to have many check it out but it really took off which in turn made me spend a bit more time creating more permanent solutions in Plusses, a hosted blog that uses Google+ posts as the content creation platform, and Google+Blog, a plugin that pulls in posts to self-hosted WordPress blogs. These tools allowed many people to have an active blog without the extra effort of maintaining another presence.

For whatever reason I have no problem creating a long post for a social network, but always found it much more difficult to blog. With that in mind, and my experience creating the afforementioned cross-posting solutions I will be crafting my posts on Google+ and then automatically replicating them to minimali.se (my blog). The blog is not really a high value asset to me, but it is a place that can point people in the right direction if they are looking to reach out. If it helps my writing find those that are in need of it then all the better.

If you have any questions on this type of setup, be sure to let me know. Good luck to all those that are also looking to write more in 2013.

Daniel Treadwell is a Developer, Amateur Photographer and Founder of Fotostat, a central hub where photographers can easily manage their online presence.